At present, information processing systems that include client apparatuses and server apparatuses are used. The client apparatuses are operated by users. The server apparatuses perform business processes. A client apparatus requests a server apparatus to perform a predetermined process. Another client apparatus is able to obtain the result of the predetermined process from the server apparatus and then to request the server apparatus to perform another process using the obtained result. For example, such an information processing system facilitates smooth execution of a series of activities (for example, receipt, quotation, approval, etc.) that involve a plurality of users within an organization.
In such an information processing system, there is an attempt to visualize a flow (a processing flow) related to a series of business processes. For example, there has been proposed a technique of, when a range of data to be analyzed is specified by a user, creating a workflow diagram representing transfer of information between medical information devices by collecting and analyzing communicated data between the medical information devices in a hospital information system.
Please see, for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2008-33754.
The current status of operations may be confirmed by continuously obtaining information on the operations. For example, by monitoring the records of operations while executing the operations, it is possible to extract and correct errors and bottlenecks in a processing flow. However, executing more operations on a system increases an amount of information to be analyzed. Therefore, if an attempt is made to monitor and analyze information regarding all operations in real-time (or at relatively short time intervals), the load for monitoring the information and the load for computational processing may increase.
On the other hand, if such analysis is carried out at relatively long time intervals (for example, daily, every week, every month, etc.), there occurs a problem of failing to promptly provide a portion that needs to be improved. For example, if some processes in a processing flow are completed by a certain time, information regarding these processes is available. However, information regarding the remaining processes in the processing flow may be obtained next time or some time later. This causes a delay in confirming the execution status of the entire processing flow.